Schwan’s opens new North Loop sweet spot

Led by Minnesota native, Edwards Dessert Kitchen aims to serve post-dinner treats with modern flair

The opening week went so well at Edwards Dessert Kitchen, the patisserie had to limit its hours over its first weekend to renew its supply of desserts.

Pastry chef Christina Kaelberer said she envisions the new North Loop pastry shop as a destination for post-dinner treats. The restaurant, which shares the name of a retail line of pies from Marshall, Minnesota-based Schwan’s Co., will also serve as a test hub for the company to develop desserts down the line.

“(Schwan’s) said, ‘I don’t want to give you a box that you have to work in,’” Kaelberer said. “It was very much ‘go and do and we’ll figure it out later.’”

Despite the connection to the frozen food maker, Edwards Dessert Kitchen’s high-end confections are made in house. Kaelberer, who is part of the company’s Chef’s Collective along with local chefs Ann Kim and Jamie Malone, designed the menu around elevating recognizable desserts with new flavors that the St. Louis Park native picked up throughout her career, which has taken her to restaurants across Boston, San Francisco, New York and Miami.

Photo by Eric Best

There are novelties ($5) like a roasted strawberry shortcake pop; bars and cookies ($5) including caramel and Chinese 5 Spice snickerdoodles; verrines ($10) like a vanilla bean mousse; housemade ice cream ($10) in flavors like cinnamon toast swirl and a few savory items like paninis and tartines ($10). There’s a selection of $15 made-to-order dishes like a passionfruit sorbet and a cheese plate. Kaelberer said some of the most popular items have been the more traditional salted butter chocolate chunk cookie ($5) and the more unusual mango coconut crème pie puff ($10).

“It’s fun and interesting and something unexpected,” she said.

Eventually, the restaurant will work with staff from Schwan’s to see what popular items could be emulated on the retail side. Some desserts may work particularly well, Kaelberer said, from a miso caramel pudding to the peanut butter semifreddo.

“Trends really start in restaurants. They recognize that trend,” she said.

Edwards Dessert Kitchen opened around the end of July in the Lowry Morrison Building, a formerly dilapidated building at Washington & 2nd that owner John Rimarcik recently renovated. The fine-casual restaurant’s interior was designed by Minneapolis-based Shea Design with cactuses from Northeast-based Madre Cacti Co., a “Sweet Vibes Only” neon sign and marble bar countertops.

For the bar, Edwards Dessert Kitchen partnered with Northeast’s Tattersall Distilling Co. to create a cocktail menu that could pair well with sweet desserts. The selection of $12 cocktails features two on tap, including an Old Fashioned and the Black Forest, a tequila-based drink with Tattersall’s sour cherry liqueur. There are several local beer and wine options.

The restaurant gets its coffee beans from St. Paul-based True Stone Coffee Roasters. Kaelberer said they didn’t overlook the cow’s milk, which comes from Kapper’s Big Red Barn of Chatfield, Minnesota. For non-dairy alternatives, there are four nut-based milks available.

“(Kapper’s milk) just really amplifies the coffee that we’ve picked,” she said.

Photo by Eric Best

The North Loop is a prime home for the restaurant, Kaelberer said, because of its food and beverage scene, which, despite its density, doesn’t have many dessert-focused options. After a meal, Edwards Dessert Kitchen is a place where you can go when “you’re out and you don’t want to go home” beyond a bar or club, she added. And because of the fine-casual, counter-based model, diners won’t have to wait long to indulge their sweet tooth.

“We felt like there was a need here in the community for that, a place you can go after dinner,” she said.